Horsham residents urged to recycle more plastic bottles

Grubby but otherwise in remarkable condition this washing up bottle was thrown away sometime in the 1970s and was recently dug out of a closed landfill site near Steyning as part of on-going monitoring works. SUS-150130-100139001

Tom Hibbs

Horsham residents are being urged to make a pledge to recycle just one more plastic bottle each week.

Pledge 4 Plastics, a national campaign, is being backed by Horsham District Council and West Sussex County Council.

In the UK the average household uses more than 440 plastic bottles per year, but recycles only around 250 of them.

Lionel Barnard, WSCC’s cabinet member for residents’ services, said: “In the UK, the average household uses more than 440 plastic bottles per year, but recycles only around 250 of them.”

Bottles have been found under a mountain of waste from around 40 years ago, and they are still in good condition.

Plastic bottles can take years to decompose but they can be recycled into toys, football shirts, fleece jumpers and even park benches.

All types of plastic bottles can be recycled such as those used for shampoo, shower gel, cleaning products, cooking oil and drinks. They just need to be clean, dry and loose before being added to the recycling bin.